Cheng is raced to the hospital in an old, dirty ambulance. She worries that she has a malignant growth but does not fear death. The Chinese people believe that life is a continuation from generation to generation. Cheng is but a chain in the line of her mother and daughter.

Once Cheng sees the nurse, the woman appears to have real medical training. She tells Cheng that there is nothing she can do, but the malnutrition is not helping her. She advises Cheng to eat as much as she can and will tell the Detention House to give her extra foods and permission to purchase vitamins. When Cheng returns from the hospital, she is allowed to purchase vitamins like glucose powder and other similar necessities. It can be argued that since Cheng's health was so poor to begin with, this aid played a significant...